Carbon Nanofiber Paper Composites for Lightning Strike Protection

The military’s interest in replacing current lightning strike protection materials stems from a desire to reduce weight and cost, improve ease-of-repair, facilitate lay-up on contoured surfaces, and add the mechanical and shielding benefits of nanocomposites. We describe how this can be addressed with a type of carbon nanofiber paper that incorporates a limited content of nickel nanostrands. The two materials exist as an intertwined porous network within the paper, and this network can be infused with polymer as part of a layered composite structure. The key to achieving high conductivity in this system is a low-temperature sintering that connects the nickel nanostrands within the paper while leaving the overall paper flexible. The proposed effort will create large sheets of highly conductive nanofiber paper, and then use them to prepare composite panels that will tested for their lightning strike behavior. This is a collaboration between the nanofiber papermaker and a University of South Alabama research group with an extensive program in nanocomposites. The University organization has direct experience in converting nanofiber papers into nanocomposite panels, and they can provide mechanical, structural, and electrical characterization as well.